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I have a problem while I clean/organize; I get caught up in the things I am organizing and so tend to move slowly. Does anyone else share this dreadful downfall?

I’ve tried to work on it over the years, but I am coming to accept the fact that I will more likely take longer to get an organizing task done because I tinker, putter, reminisce, or just plain dawdle. Hi. I’m Heather and I get side-tracked while organizing.

Well, while my mom was here helping us get the house in order, it happened again. I was working on my disaster of a office/craft/writing area and I got an idea for a project to help beautify the space. It was simple (in my head), and would only take a little detour from the organizing. It was all in an effort to make the organization more appealing.

Here is what I started with:

An old tin planter that once housed an artificial plant

Not so pretty inside

It had been functioning as a pen/pencil holder for quite some time. I had a similar thought for its use as I was organizing the craft supplies. Here is its rehab journey:

The first layer of paint was a little leftover gray paint from touching up the nursery. I let that coat dry, and then brushed on the French Vanilla color you see above. Literally a little dab did it. I brushed this color on lightly as I wanted some gray to show through.

Finished painting and letting it dry on my fancy holder, a Pepsi 2-liter

From Old and Ugly to Fresh and Pretty

Pretty Outside and Inside

I applied the flocked scrapbook paper to the inside of the planter before I painted, using hot glue. It’s not perfect as the planter wasn’t perfectly round, but it looks so much nicer. I went with two patterns in the same color scheme to keep it playful. After the paint dried I used a fine grit sand block and gently sanded along the vine patterns and the edges. I wanted some of the original color to come through for the aged effect. I’m pretty happy with how it turned out, for a free project as I had all the supplies on hand.

It now beautifully holds my colored-pencils and markers for craft projects

I think it’s much prettier now sitting on the top of the craft shelf, and it keeps the pencils and markers at easy reach instead of in boxes.

So my planter has had a pretty rehab stint. Now if I can move a little quicker through the rest of my clutter I’ll be one happy girl. I just have to pause and catch my breath, rest, and get my feet up every 30 minutes or so thanks to this growing little baby boy who is bouncing around inside.

Organization and clean-up has been slow-going this week. Just when I feel like we make some headway on the clutter, there are the everyday tasks to tackle. Dishes need washing, laundry must be folded, toys must be put away, and I have to stop and rest every hour or two thanks to being 8 months pregnant.

During my rest breaks, I get my slightly swollen feet up and try to catch up on the blogs I follow. One I can always count on for beautiful inspiration whether through photos or design, usually both, is le zoe musings. Kellie has an amazing eye for design and all things beautiful, including her adorable baby girl, Zoey. Well, she inspired me again yesterday with her recent post on damask wallpaper. I LOVE damask print and her post provided lots of eye candy and not only kicked my organization drive up again, it caused me to do some damask dreaming of my own.

While I enjoy a pretty damask print in many hues, (my bedding is turquoise and brown damask), I wanted to focus on my favorite color; purple.

Since we live in a parsonage, we really can’t wallpaper, but a girl can dream. And while I was dreaming of pretty purple things, I thought I’d include a few other inspiration pieces. Continue reading →

I adore this idea I came across on Pinterest! I ventured on over to the original link at Jen’s fabulous and crafty blog, My Own Road to check it out.

Ever wonder what to take to the hospital when visiting a mom and baby? Most people take a sweet gift for the little bundle of joy. But what about the mom?! She usually gets flowers that will wilt or balloons that will deflate. Pretty, but what about something a little more useful? Most moms, new and experienced, take a bag full of necessities to the hospital. (Most take things we’ll never use the first time. I speak from experience!) There are some items though that I wish I would have taken or had with me the first time. This is where Jen’s, from My Own Road, nifty gift idea comes in. Why not take a pretty bag full of thoughtful “survival” items? Jen also created and provided links for the fun printables (in pink and blue) to attach to the bag. Here is what Jen suggested go in the bag.

Check out Jen’s post at My Own Road to see the detailed list and get the printables. I’d also suggest checking out some of her other great ideas while there!

Jen got me thinking. She asked at the end of her post, what things we might include in a survival kit. Not only were there several items I have already added to my necessity list for when Kasen comes in June, I am attending a baby shower Saturday for my cousin, Julie, who is expecting her first baby soon. (A girl!) I decided I would see what I had in stock to use as a mock-up, and do this fun post. Here is what I came up with! Continue reading →

Last Saturday my wonderful mother-in-law came to visit us. She is a very gifted seamstress as one of her many hobbies and I feel very blessed to often be the recipient of her talents with a needle and thread. I was thrilled when she agreed to make some items for Tiger cub’s nursery.

She made the trek from Owasso, OK to Mudrow ready to tackle the big city of Ft. Smith, AR which is the closest place to purchase fabric. We knew we’d have to hit Hobby Lobby and were hoping there would be a JoAnn’s and/or Hancock’s to peruse as well. After convincing Aaron and Micah to join us for the day (enticed by lunch at Red Lobster), we set out on the adventure and a quick map search on the iPhone told me that Hancock’s was the only other fabric option besides the miracle store that is Hobby Lobby.

We hit Hancock’s first and they were having a moving sale! They were moving to a new store (across the street), so score on the savings! I found a few fabrics I liked as contenders for the crib skirt and clicked some pics to compare at Hobby Lobby. Thankfully my fabric samples from Carousel Designs had come in earlier in the week so I could see how they worked with ones I found in store. You can see the an example of some of the bedding I am getting by clicking here.

After Hancock’s we made our way to Hobby Lobby and I had to remind myself that I was having a boy. But darn it, there are just far more fun,, pretty, and fabulous fabric choices out there for the girls! Thankfully, I found the perfect fabric for the crib skirt and fell in love with the design. We were able to choose fabric for the skirt, a crib sheet, and even for Micah’s new toddler bed at Hobby Lobby. Yay for Toy Story fabric! We headed back to Hancock’s to pick up some fabric we had seen there as well for a diaper stacker, a scarf for me, and Handy Manny fabric for a blanket and pillow for Micah’s bed. He LOVES his new Handy Manny pillow! (Yes, the scarf is fabulous!)

So here are the fabrics we picked out to compliment the ones we are getting from Carousel Designs. A big thank you to my MIL, Priscilla for helping choose them and of course for all her hard and wonderful work on the bedding for both boys. (Thank you for sending the pictures of the fabric as well!)

After looking for more unique baby bedding I finally came across a website that had tons of fabric options and a design it tool that lets you customize the look down to the color of the trim in the room. It was super fun and easy to play with and I ended up with a design that I am pretty excited about. Carousel Designs is a fabulous site and their prices are pretty comparable to other custom sellers like you’ll find on Etsy.com.

Click on the HERE above and it will take you to my registry on the site. Not expecting anything off of it, but an easy way to let others take a closer look. And if my sweet mother decides to purchase her new grandson the whimsical quilt, then that’s a special bonus!

We will not be using a traditional bumper this time around which is one reason I did not want to go with a store bought, bed-in-a-bag option. There is nothing wrong with that, and is what we used last time. Since we know we don’t need the bumper, there is no point in paying for the set! We ended up using a breathable bumper with Micah once he started moving around more in the crib, and I have my eye on the yellow version this time. It will give the same look as above with the extra safety benefit for only $24 at Amazon vs. $130 on Carousel Designs.

My very gifted mother-in-law has offered to sew a crib sheet and/or crib skirt for us, so I am hoping that a trip to Hobby Lobby or Hancock Fabrics will produce a similar Black Baby Toile fabric that can save us a % of the $109 the skirt would cost. I love toiles in general, but I really like the design of this one with babies playing in a not too flowery park setting. I think it will tie into the Tree of Life well. I’m not so hopeful of finding a close match for the Gray Script fabric. Recent searches have not shown promising in that area, plus I really love the simple but elegant pattern Carousel Designs fabric has. The words on the fabric are ones we will whisper to our little boy to help lull him to sleep, like sweet dreams, wish upon a star, rock a bye, sleep tight, and love bebe; it is perfect, and within price range at $36.

The quilt we plan on hanging on the wall near the changing table as we did with Micah’s; using it as visual impact and stimulation for TC (Tiger Cub). I love the whimsical nursery rhyme fabric for adding fun eye candy and the colors are perfect. I liked having the Gray Script on the back of the quilt and envision the quilt becoming a treasured keepsake we can pass along to our baby boy when he has children of his own one day. I can think of nothing sweeter than our grandchild or children playing on the very words that we lovingly spoke to our own child. (See mom, don’t you want to buy it now!) 😉

As for the design tool, I loved that you could select the wall, trim, flooring, and crib color to really give you an idea of what the bedding will look like with all the elements pulled together. You better believe I pinned this website on Pinterest!

My name is Heather and I am a beloved child of God. I'm 30, a pastor's wife, mom, and aspiring novelist, and journeying to find out the rest. My blog is a glimpse into this journey and the insight I gain along the way; some laughter to ease the bumps and bruises, grace to cover my many mistakes, and love to offer hope and healing from a heart that has been broken and restored again and again.